Pirate Days in St. Augustine

[chaslaw]

We were supposed to be going back on Monday. However, we're now waiting three months to go back. Well, I'm waiting three months. Jake doesn't know when. He thinks that maybe we'll go during Spring Break. (Is he kidding? Those crowds? I don't think so, pal!) But I am the woman with the plan.

The players:

Me and Jake (that's us in the picture below)

As I said, we were supposed to be going next week but things happen. My grandmother passed away earlier this summer and Jake, who was very close to her, took it incredibly hard. One of his favorite things was to sit and read to her. I'll try to upload the last picture of them together. I'm glad I took it. Jake got very clingy and started worrying all the time that I was going to die. Funny enough, the first thing that made him feel better was when he asked if my mom's dog, who had died a month prior, would be in Heaven to meet Granny. I told him yes and he was happy that they would be able to take care of each other. There were other things here and there that ate up time. Then my mom got sick. Really sick and needed some help so I did. So there went all of my vacation time for 2008 which, you know, shot the vacation.

At least for October 2008.

January 2009 is a completely different story....

 

[chaslaw]

So, what does this have to do with St. Augustine? Because I want to surprise the boy, that's why. I'm not even planning to tell him once we are on the road because I want him to sleep all or most of the way there. I want to see his face when we pull up to the Mouse House. I think it will be pretty darn funny.
But I also know he needs something to look forward to. He's bummed about missing MNSSHP but has been a real trouper about everything.
So I told him about "Pirate Days in St. Augustine" Does such a thing exist? I have not a clue. It sounded good, though. I told him there were big pirate ships we could see and he loves boats so that went well. I told him if he would be really good, behave himself and do his work in school, I would take him there. I told him there would be rides and food. He told me I was supposed to be on a diet, the cheeky little monkey! But that's a seven year old boy for you, right?

I've got him all primed for PD and can pretend that it is the reason I'm excitedly planning. Will he forgive me the deception? I think so. If not, I'll make him walk the plank! :

For those familiar with my last Disney adventure... I've checked the tent repeatedly. It works. We've used this one to go camping repeatedly. Yes, I said camping. We will be camping in January. As long as I take the right equipment, it should be fine.

And if it get's too cold, there's always the car...

 

[chaslaw]

OK, I pulled my calendar off of the wall today. The one here at work. Mocking me. I had mouse ears all over next week but instead of hanging at the Haunted Mansion, I'll be getting my boss ready for client depositions.
I think I'll look at the office as my very own little Tower of Terror right here in SC!

So I'm planning this thing again and I'm thinking that instead of just moving the date, I want to throw in surprises along the way. Like I alluded to before, the summer was tough on him. (That's the picture of him with my granny as my avatar-- it was maybe two months before she died) Anyway, he has had A LOT of trouble settling into the school year. I'm not sure I could have taken him out for the vacation anyway because he is only just now settling down. During the last two weeks he was only referred to the principal once and that's a major accomplishment which tells you how stressful it has been. He's a really good kid and is very smart but it has just been a tough time. His teacher and the principal, however, both said they've noticed it getting better the last couple of weeks so we are all hopeful that we've rounded the corner. I'm very blessed that he's in a good, supportive school!

The question is: How do I surprise him along the way (keeping in mind a limited budget)? I also don't want there to be constant reminders of "We didn't go to WDW in October" for the next three months because that will just make things worse. However, I know he enjoys planning these things with me so I'm wondering if he should help me plan a trip to St. Augustine. What do y'all think?

 

[chaslaw]

OK. It's actually just under three months but I nearly slipped last night.

See, Jake has been saving his allowance and doing other things to earn money to buy the Lego Batman PS2 game and he just got it last night. --- By the way, I'm really proud of him because he worked hard and he took a pass on a number of other things he wanted since he was saving for this game. Good kid! --- Anyway, we were playing and Jake said something about taking it when we go to visit my mom next weekend. I replied that we are not going to lug around a game system everywhere we go. He reasoned that it would help him stay out of trouble. (Like I said before, cheeky little monkey...) Then I shot back, Well, then, you can just spend the whole time playing Batman while I'm enjoying --- What, mommy? What's wrong? Nothing, babe. I just bit my tounge. Seriously. I had to bite my tounge because I almost said "Disney". Clearly I should not be the keeper of state secrets. Y'all just keep me in your prayers that either I keep my size eights out of my mouth or that they are so firmly wedged, I'm unable to spill the big surprise.

Speaking of surprises, I'm planning another one. We've never done any character meals but I know Jake really wants to so I'm trying to decide which one. It's between Chef Mickey and Ohana's BF Breakfast... and Crystal Palace... and maybe Supercalifragilistic (because we love, love, LOVE the Mad Hatter). Suggestions? Anyone? Last time we didn't do it because we decided to make our meals fast... except Mexico... mmmmmmm Mexican. Oh, yeah. Gotta go back there. But I digress. Repeatedly. What are the character meals like?

Well, I better get busy here at work. I am going to be taking a long lunch so I can run over to the school and have lunch with the boy. It's our little thing. Once every couple of weeks, we do lunch and recess together. I figure I better enjoy it while he still wants to been seen in public with me!

Later, y'all~

 

[Towers5]

We have done all of the character meals you mentioned....My kids enjoyed all of them......I will say though that the Supercal breakfast was a hoot. The MAD HATTER there was wonderful. He played his part to the nines and the interaction was great.
Hopes this helps a little.

 

[chaslaw]

Thanks!! I am really torn between Ohana and Supercal and am trying to decide which one he would like better. At least I'm fairly certain that whichever one we do, it should be good fun.

I am going to spend my lunch hour getting a few things together so that Jake and I can have a character meal at home. He was seriously bummed this morning because he knows this was supposed to be the first day of our vacation. I'm not sure how I will do it but I'm going to. Maybe I can find a stuffed Stitch, a few decorations for a mini-luau, and I'll grab some items from the O'hana menu. What do y'all think? I know it's not the same as being there but it's something, right? I was just going to ignore it all this week unless he brought it up but that was the first thing he said after "Morning, mom"... "We're supposed to be at Disney". We'll see. I'll get the stuff at lunch, put it in my trunk, and see how he is when I pick him up. If he's over it, I'll just save all of that (except the food, of course!) for another time. If he's still bummed, we'll have a luau.

I'll let y'all know...

 

[chaslaw]

Did you know that fall is a pretty bad time to look for decorations for a luau? Or that Party City doesn't really stock Stitch stuff anymore? Yeah, well, now you do. Or maybe I'm the only dorkus who was unaware. But I did get a few no-name (read: NOT Pirates of the Caribbean) decorations thinking I would perpetuate the whole "Pirate Days" lie. Turns out, I didn't need to!

I think we (and by "we" I mean everyone other than me because I simply refuse to) have to face the fact that I'm more bummed about postponing the trip than Jake. Oh, he was bummed yesterday morning but by the time I picked him up after work he was fine. He didn't even mention it and was more interested in my installation of the firewire card so I could download from my camcorder than he was anything else. So dinner was simply the usual dinner last night. We chatted about our day and complained that our apartment still isn't self-cleaning. Darn apartment.

So anyway, what I'm going to do is to save that stuff and when it gets a little closer to the actual trip, we're going to have a pirate lunch or dinner or something. Sound like a plan? Does to me!

Thanks for listening to me... both of you

 

[chaslaw]

Hi, y'all!
I was finally able to edit (ok... attempt to edit) some of the footage from our first trip to WDW and it made me even more excited and ready to return. Please forgive my awful sounding scratchy, yet loud, voice in this. I'm just a big redneck girl. However, the boy is cute as can be. Click on the video to see Jake enjoy the Mad Tea Party for the very first time.
Roll on January 2009!!!!!!

[URL=http://s520.photobucket.com/albums/w322/dulcinea_23/Misc/?action=view&current=Untitled_0001.flv][/URL]

 

[chaslaw]

Jake and I went to Disney on Ice yesterday and had such a good time--- we started talking about how much fun we have at Disney. I opened my mouth and out comes, "Just think! In only a few----" Jake whirled around on me and was all "What? In a few what? What's happening? Are we---" Me, I'm like all "Don't. Finish. That. Question." He's all "When? Soon? For my birthday?" To which I cleverly replied, "Now, son, you know how much I hate being cold and your birthday is in February and that's cold so you shouldn't count on that." It went on and on. I'm pretty sure he's once again thinking it will be Spring Break at the earliest so y'all say a prayer. Please, Lord, help Susan keep her size eights on the ground and out of her mouth.

We had tons of fun at the show, by the way. As you can see, Jake is doing his best to support Disney during these tough economic times!

 

[chaslaw]

I'm sorely tempted to go to WDW by myself. I love my son to pieces and try to do right by him and right now I'm not sure if I should take him to Disney in January afterall.

Jake really can behave himself. He's smart, knows the difference between right and wrong, and has a good heart. However. Sometimes he's also manipulative and he will push things just beyond the breaking point because he is fixated on the notion that it's just so tough to be a kid and that it's unfair to be told what to do. I'm trying some different things to combat that like giving him a budget (with Monopoly money) and telling him to make ends meet on my salary. I'm also upfront about some of the realities of adulthood --- but it's a really rocky patch of late. We'll have good days like this past Sunday but then there's yesterday...

When I picked him up from afterschool there was a note from his teacher. Short version (I'm at work so maybe the longer one, later)- 14 kids in his class got into trouble. Jake wasn't just one of them. He was the ringleader! Now his teacher didn't tell me that last part. She held each child accountable for making the same bad decision and I agree with that. However, in talking to my son I realized that he instigated the whole thing. While I am glad that he is a leader rather than a follower, HE'S SUPPOSED TO USE THAT GIFT FOR GOOD AND NOT TROUBLE-MAKING!!!

So the question (one of them, anyway) is: Do I still take him to WDW in January? Maybe it would do him good to have to sit it out while I am there to drive home the reality that actions have consequences. This isn't the first time he's acted like a punk (and will undoubtably not be the last) and I have been trying to stay calm and not over-react but I'm wondering if it's time to swat flies with an anvil, you know?

I'm pissed. I'm frustrated. And I'm disappointed because I know he is capable of so much more. I've told him repeatedly- I expect a lot from him because I see how much he has to offer.

So what do I do now???

 

[chaslaw]

OK. So if I take away the Disney trip that he doesn't even know exactly when it's going to be, how is that effective? I mean, I would have to say "Well we were going in January but now it's just me, pal." That seems more mean-spirited than discipline. What lesson is he learning? Don't mess up or something you didn't even know you had might be yanked? While that is a reality in life, I'm not too sure it's something a seven-year-old is going to wrap his head around. And if he does, what comes from that lesson? I'm just thinking that maybe tying the trip to behavior is not a good idea. Tying a character meal to good behavior, I can see that. I could see telling him, "Look. When we next go back, if you haven't cleaned up your act, I've got no problem withholding the extras like character meals and souvenirs." Because I keep coming back to the fact that we need regular family vacations. They won't all be Disney but I told him we were going back as our next big vacation. (Note to self: Self, you know better than to make promises without considering everything. Ya ding-dong.)

So it seems we're back on for a party of two with the new caveat that the special items/events are contingent on good behavior. Besides, he's already off of all electronics until he earns those back. I'm feeling better now.

The planning may recommence!

 

[chaslaw]

I love my kid. Have I made that clear yet? Seriously. Jake is the best.

First things first- Jake knows. Long story short, he was down in the dumps because of something at school and was just getting so sad that I couldn't take it anymore so I filled him in. I figured, give him something positive to focus on. He laughed and said the surprise never would have worked because he would have been awake before we got to Fort Wilderness (most likely, true) and once he started seeing all of the signs for Disney World he would have guessed. Best laid plans of mom's with mice brains, I suppose. Anyway- we're both involved in the planning now. Which is good because now he can help me pack the dang car!!!

However. There's always a "however"... With all of the uncertainty these days, we're doing the bare bones trip. Which, let's face it, is still a trip to Disney!!! The good news is, we can bring it (four days) in for under $600. In fact, closer to $550.

Here's where Jake's such a great kid. We were having a talk about the financials of it. I've found it very useful to give him a set amount of play money, detail the expenses, and so "OK. Make it work." That seems to reach him because he looked at me, after announcing all of the things he wanted to do, and said, "Oh, mommy, we can't do all that." However, instead of crying about it or just expecting me to sort it out, he said "We could skip the character meals." Good boy!!! He's also fine with just a base tickets because, honestly, there's plenty to do in any single park for the entire day.

So... it's now going to be: arrival on 1/15 (after driving through the night), put up the tent in a non-preferred and therefore less expensive site (I've practiced loads with this one specifically and it works!!), enjoy the parks, make our meals (God bless you, crock pot), leave on 1/19 without hitting the parks, drive back to Chucktown, crash.

Just over one month away!!!

 

[stitcharoo]

wow!
this is gonna be so much fun!
i am just like you, i would keep the secret for a while (horribly, i might add)
and then tell them. baha

also, that video of your son it too adorable!!

 

[chaslaw]

Thanks! Sometimes, like earlier this evening, there wasn't enough cuteness in the world in that boy to stop me wanting to shove my head in a blender. He's recently decided that music is his thing and he actually has a good ear for it but I'm really starting to regret that time three years ago that I bought him the harmonica because it was the cheapest souvenier at Festival Hispano. Sometimes a two bedroom apartment is just too small!!!

I'm a little jealous because you're returning to WDW so soon. Have a great trip, sticharoo! Now I'm off to read your pre-trippie...

 

[chaslaw]

A friend of mine from work is surprising her daughters with a family trip to WDW and will be going at the same time as Jake and I. She's staying off-site in a condo and will have both daughters, her mom, and her three grandchildren with her but we might manage to get together. We shall see.

I'm just really looking forward to it. I can't wait!!! It's about to get crazy-busy, though. My boss goes to trial (as an attorney, not defendant) immediately when I return so I have to make sure everything is prepared in advance and since there's that whole week at of Christmas where I'm not likely to see him, that doesn't leave much time for all the details

Find your happy place, Susan. Go to your happy place and stay there!

 

[chaslaw]

A quick note. Got in the elevator at work today along with a coworker. She's a huge Mouse fan, too! Pushed the button for our floor. Four. It went to three. Stopped. Went down. Stopped between floors. Started making this awful shuddering noise. Jolted up some. Stopped. Alarm goes off. Finally the stupid thing stopped at our floor and the doors opened. You've never seen two people get out of an elevator so fast. We looked at one another for a second. She has been listening to me plan the January trip. She shrugged and said, "I guess you don't have to go to Disney for the Tower of Terror."

We've used the stairs for the rest of today.

 

[chaslaw]

I'm so excited!!!! I got lucky at the office Christmas party last night! No, not that kind of lucky. Sheesh. I work for a bunch of lawyers and ... and... antibiotics can only do so much, you know.

I won a door prize which just took care of Christmas presents. I won a brand new Wii. How cool is that? Jake will never guess because he had already accepted that short of a lottery win, I was not going to buy one of those. I love the gaming but, come on... I like to eat, too! But now I won this and so the money I had scraped together for a Nintendo DS (yeah, we're a nerd family) will go to our Disney vacation instead. Yipeeeeeeeeeeeeeee I am one seriously happy camper at this point. A major Christmas surprise AND a little extra coin for our family vacation. I lead such a blessed life!!!

 

[chaslaw]

There's been so much going on. Christmas is my favorite time of all so we've been having a lot of fun and, all of the sudden, I realized our return to Disney is only a bit over two weeks away. I like to look at it in those terms because two is such a nice small-sounding number.

Like so many others, we have scaled back our vacation to the bare bones but I have no doubt we will still have tons of fun. I just can't wait!!!!!!!!!